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Saturday, March 19, 2011

I was recently sent a copy of Kris Gethin’s book, Body by Design to review. Let me first preface by saying, I am not trying to loose weight or transform my body in a short amount of time. I actually hate the word diet or any affiliation to the word. So when I was contacted by the Body Building Team to provide my honest opinion on this new diet and exercise program, I was a little hesitant.

Regardless, I was an English major in college so being able to do commentary on any piece of literature is my forte.

To begin, let me first explain the overall concept of the book. Kris Gethin, Editor in Chief of Bodybuilding.com, leads one of the world’s largest online fitness resources and magazines. He uses primarily his own experiences to preach his philosophy on weight loss and body transformation as he himself underwent significant obscurity with his own journey. As a recovering near-death anorexic to a compulsive over eater, Kris has truly experienced both ends of the extreme.

The Body By Design Book is an overall plan that promotes health from the inside out using a 12 week diet and exercise regime. It provides a comprehensive workout schedule that has you working out 6 days a week along with, what I thought to be, a fairly restrictive meal plan.

Throughout the book, you will find several testimonials from real people and their own transformation stories. Some are actually quite moving and reach a level far deeper than just weight loss, but total life changing experiences.

The overall compliment I have to the book is Gethin’s beliefs that the psychological element of desire in health is more important than the self-loathing aspect. He stresses that being healthy is not something you should want to reach a fixed goal, but rather something you do because you want to treat your body well and lead a more fulfilling and rewarding lifestyle because of it.

What I found to be a little excessive was the fact that Gethin leave’s little room altercation in a very restrictive and limited plan. I understand that if people are trying to loose weight in a short amount of time, really, the only realistic way to achieve this is to be extreme, but the reality of people actually living this lifestyle forever is rare.

The plan has you eat ever 2-3 hours or about 6 times a day. It praises supplements and meal replacement shakes and says you should be drinking a gallon of water a day. Not to say that any of these rules are wrong, I just believe that they may not be the most effective for everyone.

Overall, The Body By Design Book ranks higher on the charts of diet books in my opinion. Although I don’t plan on partaking in the program, I believe at the very least, I gained some profound concepts into the world of health and fitness mainly by reading other people’s experiences. If you are looking to loose weight by completing a restrictive program, I say, it’s most important to do your research and find out what plan will fit best for you and your lifestyle.

Want a copy of the Body By Design Book?

The people at Bodybuilding.com have offered to give one copy to one of my readers.

All you need to do is leave a comment on this post revealing one transformation you’ve made this year in your health life. It can be as simple as eating breakfast every day or cutting back on caffeine.